Suggestion to GoI for an amendment in P.R. Act

3.03.2010
Navi Mumbai
Respected Sir,

In the matter of PRSEC/E/2010/02890 ,dated 23.02.2010
Regarding amendments suggested as required in the Panchayati Raj Act, on the part of Govt. of India, for the creation of permanent infra structures, for the sake of the poor of the rural India, so as to stop them from dying, out of turn through starvation and disease and paucity of funds to buy coarse cereals for cooking a meal in their homes for their families.
In the TOI of the 28th Feb., on page6 there is an article called “Bitter Harvest” about Nero’s Guests .As we saw in a film in the fifties how Nero played a fiddle while Rome burnt. This article, however, is about Deepa Bhatia’s documentary as how 200,000farmers have committed suicide since 1997,driven by debt and distress. The extreme step is taken when faced with stark reality of starvation of the family, of one’s love and of one’s lovely and tiny children –although even Deepa or Sainath are steering clear of the fact of suicides through starvation –actually. After the suicide the family is left to perish on their own. There could be no attack on a Govt. more scathing.
2.I have been thinking on ways of building a barrier against the stark reality of starvation –and ways and means of trying to provide two square meals to each such family, without fail, every day of the week and every week of the year, year in and year out, till the rulers provide them enough help and support to start functioning on their own. Meanwhile the State Govt. should take full and final responsibility to feed the dependents of a debt-ridden farmer and any death through starvation should result in dismissal of the Gram Pradhan and the Block and Sub-divisional officers concerned.
3.There is sufficient amount of funds channeling in so many ways without accountability that the wrong people are getting rich, overnight ,by the pensions doled out for the name sake and lining rich pockets and generally misused by the distributing authorities. I suggest all such funds being spent, all the time, should be stopped, henceforth and be diverted to permanent solutions and infra-structures to be raised, which would make doubly sure that no mouth in the village has gone unfed. Feed them with dignity and you will be like a God to them
4.It is only a question of managing the funds properly and diligently and whole-heartedly accepting the moral responsibility towards starvation in the country. If a farmer’s crop fails, he can wait for the next crop to prosper –we in Kaithi, with dryland farming were always ready to face three consecutive crops to fail and accordingly kept a buffer stock of seeds for three years-that can happen only if one lives that long-we have survived 545years in Kaithi, without any starvation deaths. So take an example from our hardship and tenacity and minimum of prosperity for survival. If people will continue to live they will continue to strive and succeed against all odds and farmers of this country will stop to commit suicide. This can be done by you , Sir, and I will come over to your ministry to coax you to draft the bill of amendments in the Panchayati Raj Act.
.Thanking you in anticipation for my meeting with your goodselves in New Delhi,soon.
Yours Obediently
Suresh Pratap Singh,
Tenant and Cultivator of Vill. Kaithi of Pargana Katehar, distt.Varanasi of U.P.